North American Road to BlizzCon® Tournament Kicks Off June 13

Nate "Spyrian" Valenta
2015-6-2

Heroes of the Storm™ teams from across North America are summoned to the Nexus for a brawl of epic proportions! Blizzard Entertainment is teaming up with Twitch and ESL to present the Heroes of the Storm North American Road to BlizzCon® tournament series. These thrilling events will determine the best Heroes of the Storm players in the region—and ultimately, the top Heroes team in the world.

The mayhem begins with three North America Open events, where players will meet and do battle to determine the top five teams in the region. From there, they’ll head to the Americas Championship to face off against the best teams from Latin America, Southeast Asia, Australia, and New Zealand—each fighting for a chance to compete in the Heroes of the Storm World Championship at BlizzCon 2015.

A Trio of North America Open Tournaments

The competition kicks off with three North America Open events, taking place each month from June through August. A total prize pool of over $75,000 is up for grabs. . . and the stakes get higher with each tournament.

June North America Open

Qualifiers: June 13–14

Final 8: June 20–21

Prize Pool: $15,000

1st place team earns a spot in Americas Championship

July North America Open

Qualifiers: July 11–12

Final 8: July 18–19

Prize Pool: $25,000

1st and 2nd place teams earn a spot in Americas Championship

August North America Open

Qualifiers: August 8–9

Final 8: August 21–22

Prize Pool: $35,000

1st and 2nd place teams earn a spot in Americas Championship

Signups for the June tournament qualifiers are open now athttp://esl.gg/blizzheroesna, and everyone’s invited to team up with their friends to participate. Eight teams from each month’s qualifiers will earn the right to compete in the finals of each monthly Open, and anyone can watch them duke it out live at Twitch.tv/BlizzHeroes.

North America Opens Format & Eligibility

Qualifier Format

All North America Open qualifier matches will be played in best-of-three format, and one match loss will result in elimination. Once we reach the final eight for each Open, the tournament transitions into a double-elimination format.

Draft Format and Battleground Selection

Before a match begins, a coin will be tossed to determine Team A and Team B. Team B will select the Battleground for the first game, and Team A will receive first pick and ban. Each team will also receive two hero bans during the draft pick phase, and drafting will proceed as follows:

Round 1: Each team bans 1 hero, starting with Team A.

Round 2: Team A picks 1 hero, Team B picks 2, and Team A picks 2 more.

After each game, the losing team will pick the next Battleground, and the winning team will receive first pick and ban.

Eligibility Requirements

While everyone is invited to participate in the North America Opens, there are some requirements your team must meet before you can compete. Be certain you’ve satisfied the following eligibility requirements before you register:

Team rosters may contain up to two members who are non-citizen residents of the U.S. or Canada; all other team members must be citizens of the U.S. or Canada.

Because the draft pick phase features four hero bans in total, all players on a team’s roster must own at least 14 heroes.

Americas Championship and World Championship

Once the dust settles, the top five North American teams from the Open events will head to theAmericas Championship. There, a total of eight teams—including one from Latin America, one from Southeast Asia, and one from Australia/New Zealand—will duke it out over a $100,000 prize pool and a chance to compete on the World Championship stage. More information on the Americas Championship, including when and where to watch, will be announced at a later date.

The big brawl culminates in the Heroes of the Storm World Championship, taking place at BlizzCon 2015 in Anaheim, CA on November 6–7. The top two teams from the Americas Championship will face off against the best of the best from Europe, China, Korea, and Taiwan for the title of top Heroes of the Storm team in the world—and their share of an epic $500,000 prize pool.

Once again, signups are now open for the June North America Open Qualifiers — we’ll have more info to share on the sign-up end date soon. If you and your closest Heroes of the Storm compadres are ready to start brawling for a shot at the Americas Championship, a bit of glory, and a share in the Road to BlizzCon prize pool, then be sure to register at http://esl.gg/blizzheroesna.